My sister Sofye had this picture taken in Vitebsk in 1940. She studied there and sent the photo home to Liozno. A year later she came home for vacation. There she was caught by the war, taken to the ghetto and brought to an early grave.

Immediately after the beginning of the war we started preparing for departure, packed up some things, and registered for departure by a train leaving on July 5th 1941. That didn’t run, so my family tried to leave with a horse and a cart. But after one week we returned to Liozno. Most Jews who had left the town returned, as well.During the week we were away the city was seriously destroyed. Our house remained safe, but we lived in it not for long: all Jews were moved to the ghetto. Germans arranged the ghetto in the city district where there were the poorest houses and sheds.

In September during Rosh Hashanah there was a short circuit in the ghetto, and the entire district remained without electricity. Germans considered it to be caused by obstruction (probably it was indeed) and threatened to shoot 10 people if they did not find the saboteurs. Germans came to us and chose my father, my brother and me for execution. They were already going to take us away, but at that moment my sister entered the room. One of the German soldiers looked at her in a strange manner, and then all of them left without a word. Later we got to know that Sofye and his sister were very much alike. Here you see how the beating of a moth’s wing can overturn a heavy rock.